This report summarizes feedback provided by members of the Imperial College Dance Club (ICDC) committee regarding their experiences and perspectives on the roles they have undertaken this year. The data was collected via an internal survey, with committee members responding to a standardized set of questions about their positions. Their responses have been synthesised into prose form to provide greater context and insight into how ICDC is operating from the viewpoint of its leadership team.

Individual Feeback

Ozan Toker (General Member)

Ozan has not served on the Dance Club committee prior to this year. He feels he has been doing a considerable amount of work as a general member, however he remains pleased to fulfil these duties. Ozan believes a more visible and accessible rota system would be beneficial next term, so members are clearly informed when they are required to help out. The committee responsibilities are taking up quite a bit of his time, however he finds it enjoyable and rewarding nonetheless. Interestingly, Ozan is actually dancing more this year compared to previously. Preparing the JCR for classes is occupying a large portion of his time currently. He suggests recruiting additional helpers during peak times like 5:40pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, since the first class of the evening requires the most work. Having a minimum of two people scheduled for the initial class would be helpful in his view. Ozan’s original aim was to restore the ICDC to its former success and reverse the downward trend it had been experiencing. Furthermore, he hoped to bring more cohesion and friendliness to the overall team and club. Ozan believes this year’s committee, especially Philip and Alice, have made tremendous strides and put the club on track for a potential new Golden Age. He feels the improved social media presence and performances have attracted more outside interest. Looking ahead, Ozan proposes a better organised rota, increased social events, and more collaboration with DI and RCA/RCM next term.

Ken Chong (Vice Captain BR)

Ken has not been on the Dance Club committee nor any other committees previously. He finds there are slightly more duties than he anticipated, so having additional committee members to share the responsibilities would be beneficial. The work does take up considerable time, however Ken finds it enjoyable and rewarding nonetheless. His dancing workload remains similar to before taking on the committee role. Ken prioritises his committee duties over dance practice presently. His Wednesday evening shifts are scheduled at inconvenient times, resulting in him having to spend the entire evening in the JCR. Ken suggests members ensure they have replacements arranged for any absences and inform other committee members about this. Originally, Ken wanted to restore the club calendar and begin organising upcoming competitions. He feels he has largely achieved his aims without encountering any major difficulties. Moving forward, Ken would like to attract more dancers, potentially by recruiting from other universities’ dance clubs. He proposes learning new dance styles, competing together as a team, and hosting more social dancing events. Looking two years ahead, Ken envisions IC hosting the biggest dance club and team in London, winning competitions against rivals Oxford and Cambridge and having many eager dancers vying for committee positions.

Alice Tang (President)

Unlike Ken, Alice has previous committee experience. She believes the workload this year was reduced, possibly owing to the committee commencing their planning over the summer break. While the responsibilities do consume substantial time, Alice finds her role rewarding nonetheless. Her dancing has decreased this year due to prioritising committee work and other personal commitments. Chasing up committee members regarding their tasks takes up considerable time, so Alice believes appointing a secretary would significantly improve this issue. Decision-making can be challenging without comprehensive handover notes from the prior committee, so Alice has to reach out to previous post-holders, many of whom are unresponsive. Her original aims were to create a successful, well-prepared club with complete Harlington expenditures, increase membership, enhance publicity and resolve any coach-related issues. Alice is finding it harder to dedicate time to dance this year as her course is more academically demanding. Operating with a depleted committee also complicates task delegation. Most of her initial plans remain on track, but new problems inevitably arise over time. She has been preoccupied with some personal issues at home recently which have consumed more of her time. For next term, Alice wants to assist new and existing members, ensure equitable work distribution amongst the committee, and organise an EGM as soon as possible. She also proposes ideas like OTNT or a ball, more social gatherings, resolving ongoing dress issues, formally thanking the committee, seeking sponsorship deals, lobbying for increased dance space, collaborating further with DI on shows and maintaining dance practice throughout the summer. Alice is still undecided but considering running for a position again next year.

Liz (Alternative Styles Officer)

Unlike Ken, Liz has prior Dance Club committee experience. She feels the ballroom/Latin and salsa groups are still quite divided, leaving her feeling isolated at times. Simultaneously managing classes, the salsa performance group and event planning for the salsa dancers has proven challenging for Liz. While she enjoys her role, she would need additional help to properly organise events. She was only able to coordinate the initial social gatherings this year as her workload was more manageable then. Now her degree programme responsibilities make it difficult to maintain that level of commitment. The responsibilities do take up significant time, but Liz still finds her role rewarding. Interestingly, she is actually dancing more this year. Liz believes appointing a dedicated events officer for the ballroom/Latin and salsa groups would be beneficial to coordinate regular social activities. Her original goals were to promote the salsa performance group early on and incentivise commitment from dancers, which the new payment structure helped successfully achieve. She also convinced Laith to schedule the classes at better times, improving attendance as a result. However, Liz was unable to maintain her early momentum of organising social events as her academic workload intensified. Looking ahead, she would like to organise more socials, determine how club funds could be best used, and explore ways to reward dedicated salsa dancers, like subsidised group meals. She still needs to coordinate the salsa performance events like Imperial’s Got Talent and Scala. Longer term, Liz would like the club to host popular, established social functions, strengthen inter-member bonds across the classes, and increase visibility across the Union. Liz is intending to run for a position again next year.

aki (Publicity Officer)

This is aki’s inaugural year on the Dance Club committee. His remit includes producing posters and graphics as well as managing social media. The workload is substantial but he still finds it rewarding. Aki is dancing less presently due to other commitments. Designing graphics is time consuming but enjoyable for him. He suggests communication channels like Skype or Google Docs could help improve efficiency. Aki’s original aims were to increase awareness of the club amongst students and facilitate partnerships between members lacking dance partners. He feels these goals are gradually being achieved but there is still progress to be made. With exams approaching, he has found it more challenging to uphold his committee responsibilities but remains committed to trying his best. For the summer break, Aki proposes organising a group trip. Looking further ahead, he would like the club to expand its membership and cement its status as the largest club in Imperial. Aki is intending to run for a position again next year.

Roxana (Treasurer)

Like Aki, this is Roxana’s first experience on the committee. So far she feels the workload aligns with her prior expectations. She finds the responsibilities quite time consuming, however she is highly organised. Roxana is spending less time dancing due to other commitments. Administrative tasks like invoices and financial reports do not individually take very long, however they need to be completed frequently. Maintaining the class timetables and checking them is more time consuming, so she feels this could potentially be optimised. Roxana’s original aims were to foster greater team unity, increase participation and organise more social events - all of which she feels were successfully achieved. She had also hoped the team would place highly in competitions, which they managed this year. Introducing more defined committee roles was another ambition, which is still an ongoing process. Overall, Roxana accomplished most of her initial goals without major obstacles arising. Moving forward, she would like to continue working on these same areas. Once the competition season concludes, Roxana wants to maintain regular dance practice and proposes organizing a one week intensive training camp to focus on technique. Longer term, she would like to grow club membership and expand the number of classes offered. Roxana is still considering whether to run for a position again next year.

Aizar E. D. (General Member)

Unlike Ozan, Aizar has previously been on the Dance Club committee. Based on past general members’ responsibilities, he had expected the workload to be less this year. However, he is glad the current committee is delegating more tasks and getting members more involved. At the start of his term, the workload felt greater than anticipated, however the captains have progressively taken on more duties. The responsibilities are quite time consuming, but Aizar still finds his role rewarding. He is dancing less this year due to other commitments and lacking a regular partner. Purchasing new dresses was very time consuming initially, however this project is now completed. Processing member ID photos is relatively ongoing and reasonable. Setting up committee email automation took significant effort, however it was barely utilised, leaving Aizar feeling this time was wasted. Committee meetings began deteriorating into lengthy discussions without clear decisions being made. Aizar suggests imposing time restrictions on meetings to stay focused. He also proposes laying out issues for discussion well in advance, so members can arrive prepared with suggestions. For the club overall, Aizar had hoped to cultivate a more welcoming environment this year. He succeeded in establishing some new partnerships, however feels the strict mandatory attendance policy for teams is detrimental, as it hampers members who cannot make every practice due to their studies. Aizar would appreciate each team session concluding with individuals receiving feedback to work on with their partners independently. For next term, he suggests hosting some open competitions and ending the year with a huge dance party as was done previously. Looking ahead, Aizar would love for IC to regain its standing as a formidable competitor against Oxford and Cambridge, earning more top placements at competitions. However, he is unlikely to run for a position again next year.

Conclusion

Expectations vs. Reality

Several members including the President, BR Vice Captain, and a General Member felt their workload exceeded initial expectations. Clarifying roles and responsibilities during the handover process could help set realistic expectations among new committee members.

Mistakes and Improvements

A key mistake identified was inadequate handover and documentation from the prior committee, hindering smooth transitions. Maintaining comprehensive handover notes and records would avoid this issue repeating.

Many felt the committee meetings had become inefficient - implementing timed agendas could help streamline discussions and decision-making. Communicating agenda items ahead of time also allows members to prepare suggestions.

Areas highlighted for improvement include establishing a clear roster system, recruiting more members to share duties, and appointing a Secretary to coordinate task follow-ups. Some found assigned tasks ended up being wasted efforts, so reviewing role necessity and aligning skills to tasks could help maximize outcomes.

Successes

This year’s committee was credited with reinvigorating the Club’s social media presence and performances, helping attract new members. The team also achieved competitive successes across major tournaments.

Members praised the increased delegation of duties by captains to get more people involved. Several long-term aims like improving Club unity, participation and defined roles are ongoing but deemed positive steps.